Ukraine launches attacks again on Russian territory a few days before the presidential elections in Russia. At least nine regions of the country have been targeted by Ukrainian drones, which have managed to spark fires in several refineries and fuel depots in the country. At the same time, Vladimir Putin’s Armed Forces confronted this Tuesday the Siberian Battalion and Free Russia Legion groups, formed by Russian volunteers who fight alongside Kiev against the Kremlin, on the border of the Russian regions of Belgorod and Kursk, to the north. from Ukraine.
For now, kyiv has avoided confirming the launch of dozens of drones over Russia this Tuesday. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense and the governors of several regions of the Russian European zone, the provinces attacked were Moscow, Leningrad (Saint Petersburg), Tula, Oryol, Bryansk, Nizhny Novgorod and the border provinces Voronezh, Belgorod and Kursk.
Although the Russian defense claimed to have intercepted 25 drones, several projectiles overcame anti-aircraft measures. Ukraine has set its sights on the Russian energy and manufacturing industry in recent months, and this Tuesday it achieved at least two goals. In the province of Nizhny Novgorod, west of Moscow, a refinery of the Russian oil giant Lukoil burned. Several drones hit the Kstovo facilities, according to the TASS news agency. Another fuel tank was destroyed in the province of Oriol.
In addition, a drone hit the City Hall of the city of Belgorod, 40 kilometers from the northern Ukrainian border. The explosion, which caused minor damage to the façade of the building, left two victims: one woman injured by shrapnel and another who suffered a concussion.
The Ukrainian attacks from the air were accompanied by new skirmishes on the Russian border by anti-Putin Russian volunteer groups. The assault began on Monday night with the emergence of small groups of paramilitaries supported by armored vehicles, as revealed by Russian military channels. Ukraine claims to have managed to penetrate Russian territory, while Moscow claims to have repelled the attacks and destroyed a huge number of rival combat vehicles. At least two civilians were injured in the skirmishes, although casualty figures on both sides are currently unknown.
“We often say that it is not possible to peacefully overthrow the dictatorial and criminal regime of the Russian Federation, it can only be ended with weapons in hand. Tonight we begin to fulfill the promise,” the Siberian Battalion announced on its Telegram channel after beginning the operation. The Free Russia Legion, made up of far-right Russians, published a video in which an armored car supposedly crossed the border at night. Neither the date of the recording nor the images have been able to be verified.
“We will take our land from the regime inch by inch,” the Free Russia Legion promised on its channel. The battalion, trained in Ukraine with heavy weapons, waged similar operations on Russian soil in the spring and summer of 2023. Kiev’s goal then was to sow confusion among the Russian population and force Putin to withdraw troops from the front to reinforce its borders on the eve of last year’s Ukrainian offensive.
Sources from Russian military bloggers have assured that fighting continued in isolated areas at noon this Tuesday, although the Russian Ministry of Defense emphasized that the Ukrainian operation has been “thwarted” and its paramilitaries have suffered “significant losses.” “There have been no violations of the state border,” stressed the department headed by General Sergei Shoigu.
The Russian Ministry of Defense and the Federal Security Service (FSB) each published statements in which they claim to have destroyed an impressive force in several battles. According to their figures, they killed at least 160 paramilitaries and destroyed nine tanks and more than 20 armored vehicles. However, Moscow did not offer verifiable images or any figures of its own casualties.
Some information from media related to the Kremlin gives an idea of the incursion of these groups of Russian volunteers. Russian public television correspondent Andrei Rudenko stated that enemy “reconnaissance actions” took place within the Belgorod region, while the Russian military channel Starshe Eddy admitted that in several sections of the border “heavy fighting is taking place.” intense.” For his part, the well-known Russian military blogger Wargonzo revealed that a column of vehicles with fifty paramilitaries launched an assault against Russia from the Ukrainian region of Kharkiv.
One of the hot spots has been the border village of Tiotkino, where at least one civilian has been injured, according to the independent Russian media Baza. That town in the Kursk region, located just a couple of kilometers from Ukraine, “is constantly being bombed,” confirmed the governor of the province, Roman Starovoit. The senior official published a short video on Telegram in which he admitted that “there was fighting” in his area, but assured, without giving more details, that the Ukrainian side “failed to make any progress.”
Crashed plane with 15 people on board
In addition to the attacks, the Russian armed forces also suffered another setback on Tuesday. An Il-76 cargo plane crashed after taking off from a base in the province of Ivanovo, located just over a hundred kilometers northeast of Moscow.
According to the Ministry of Defense, the cause of the accident was an engine failure that caused it to catch fire. The device remained in the air for about seven minutes before crashing to the ground with no survivors. Russian media report that all eight crew members and seven passengers on board have died.
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